Review: Cold Kiss

Cold Kiss by Amy Garvey
Release Date: September 20, 2011
Genre: Young Adult
Pages: 304 pages
Source: NetGalley
Publisher: Harper Teen

(Summary from Goodreads)

“It seemed so right. Danny was mine, I was his, and that wasn’t going to work if he was dead. So I would make him not dead, not anymore. I didn’t think any further than what it would feel like to kiss him again, to wrap my arms around him and bury my head against his shoulder.
That was my first mistake. It also turned out to be the biggest.”

When her boyfriend, Danny, is killed in a car accident, Wren can’t imagine living without him. Wild with grief, she uses the untamed powers she’s inherited to bring him back. But the Danny who returns is just a shell of the boy she once loved.

Wren has spent four months keeping Danny hidden, while her life slowly unravels around her. Then Gabriel DeMarnes transfers to her school and somehow, inexplicably, he can sense her secret. Wren finds herself drawn to Gabriel, who is so much more alive than the ghost of the boy she loved. But Wren can’t turn her back on Danny or the choice she made for him—and she realizes she must find a way to make things right, even if it means breaking her own heart.

Amy Garvey’s transcendent teen debut is perfect for fans of Shiver and Beautiful Creatures. Wren’s unforgettable voice and story will stay with readers long after the last page is turned.

My Review

When I read the summary for Cold Kiss, I was instantly intrigued. Many of us have a lost someone we have loved, myself included. But wouldn’t it be nice to have the power to bring them back. To be able to see, hear, and touch that person one more time. Wren who comes from a family of witches, had the power to do so. When she lost her boyfriend Danny, Wren felt like her world came tumbling down. She couldn’t face the idea of a world without him in it. Instead of grieving and moving on, Wren decides to use her witching powers and bring Danny back from the dead. But the Danny that she resurrected was not her Danny that she fell in love with. The saying be careful what you wish for definitely applies to this story.

Cold Kiss seemed like it was going to be a good story but alas I was sorely disappointed.  I felt the story lacked any real emotion. While I could understand Wren’s heartbreak and her desire to want to be with Danny again, I did not feel like there was enough story or background information given of their love that would allow me to get invested in these two characters. From the start the reader is immediately thrust into the aftermath of Wren bringing Danny back from the dead. I would have liked to see some kind of prior story of their relationship and then lead up to bringing him back. Sure there are snippets here and there of what Danny was like before but it just wasn’t enough for me.  As for Danny, he reminded me much of the character of Frankenstein. Lacking feeling, robotic, and at times scary. I also could not understand how Wren could profess to be so in love and distraught about Danny and what she’s done, but yet she finds time to fall for another guy.

I know there were many people who enjoyed this story but I just couldn’t get into this book. I had to force myself to finish it just to see how it would end.  I would say read this book at your own risk.

I give this book my lowest rating, one star out of five stars.

Review: Vanish

Vanish by Sophie Jordan
Release date: September 6, 2011
Genre: Young Adult
Pages: 304 pages
Source: Netgalley
Publisher: Harper Collins

(Summary from Goodreads)

To save the life of the boy she loves, Jacinda did the unthinkable: She betrayed the most closely-guarded secret of her kind. Now she must return to the protection of her pride knowing she might never see Will again—and worse, that because his mind has been shaded, Will’s memories of that fateful night and why she had to flee are gone.

Back home, Jacinda is greeted with hostility and must work to prove her loyalty for both her sake and her family’s. Among the few who will even talk to her are Cassian, the pride’s heir apparent who has always wanted her, and her sister, Tamra, who has been forever changed by a twist of fate. Jacinda knows that she should forget Will and move on—that if he managed to remember and keep his promise to find her, it would only endanger them both. Yet she clings to the hope that someday they will be together again. When the chance arrives to follow her heart, will she risk everything for love?

In bestselling author Sophie Jordan’s dramatic follow-up to Firelight, forbidden love burns brighter than ever.

My Review

I first read Firelight a couple months back and absolutely fell in love with the story of Jacinda and Will. Who knew that a book about humans who could turn into dragons could be so good. When I finished the book I couldn’t wait to get my hands on the 2^nd book in the series, Vanish. I was hoping that the book would pick up where it left off and keep me enthralled like the first one did. Let me tell you I was not disappointed. Vanish was a page turner that had me in suspense and in shock much of the time.

The book immediately starts off with a shocking twist that I did not see coming. I think this was brilliant on the part of Sophie Jordan because it forced the reader to be glued to the pages right from the start. There was never a dull moment from that point on. In Vanish you get to see what it’s really like to live among the pride. For Jacinda and her mom, life back in the pride is horrible. The pride can’t forgive her mom for taking her and her sister away and they are even more upset with Jacinda for exposing herself to Will and his family who are known draki hunters. Jacinda is forced to follow new rules and expected to never disobey the pride again or face the consequences.  

What I didn’t see coming was the connection Jacinda and Cassian develop.  In the first book Jacinda really couldn’t stand Cassian. She felt that he was only interested in her because she was the pride’s precious weapon, the only fire dragon. But in book two we see Cassian a bit more and he opens up to Jacinda and reveals that he truly does have feelings for her. He is probably the only person left on the pride who is nice to her. Jacinda begins to develop feelings for Cassian but she still has Will in her heart. I must say that I really liked Cassian in this book. I loved that Sophie Jordan threw in this love triangle.

Throughout the book Jacinda battles with the tough decision of whether to stay with the pride and Cassian or run away with Will and be free.  Jacinda ultimately makes her choice but it ends up costing her. There were so many twists and turns in this book that I couldn’t help but to keep turning the page to see what would happen next.  The ending will definitely leave you wanting more.

I give this book my highest rating, five out of five stars.